The forces of the Libyan government of national unity have captured the city of Sirte, the main stronghold of the jihadists of the Islamic State, Libyan officials announced today.
An official of the information bureau of the Isa Order told Agence France-Presse that forces loyal to the Libyan unified government took control of Sirte after fierce battles with extremists and were stationed there.
Government troops also occupied several residential districts in the eastern part of the city, and during the offensive, 11 soldiers were killed, while 45 of them were wounded, Isa said.
Sirte is located 450 kilometers east of the capital Tripoli and since the end of 2014 has been the main stronghold of Islamists in Libya.
According to Isa, government forces have been blocking the coastal parts of the city since Thursday and are fighting fierce battles with jihadists in the zone between the center and the northern parts of Sirte.
The army loyal to the unified government entered Sirte on Wednesday and advanced towards the inner parts of the city with air and artillery strikes.
The UN special rapporteur for Libya, Martin Kobler, wrote on Twitter that he was "impressed by the rapid progress of the government forces in Sirte", and one of the close advisers of US President Barack Obama said that the success of the government army was "encouraging, although the situation in Sirte is still very serious".
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